Right To Print Caricatures?

The rash of violent outbreaks throughout the world due to a nonsensical YouTube video raises an interesting question: do people have a right to display caricatures of individuals or Gods that others regard as sacred? In mid-August a German judge allowed a right wing group, Pro Deutschland to display pictures of Muhammad while protesting against Muslims. On September 1 a Muslim cleric in Sudan told people about the display and on September 11 Muslim mobs attacked the German Embassy. Naturally, German right wingers retaliated by posting the anti-Muslim video, “Innocence of Muslims.”

Frankly, it is clear there are Muslims who intend to make certain their ideas regarding what can be printed is accepted in all nations of the world. Of course, in most Muslim nations there are daily anti-Semitic cartoons and virulent anti-Jewish books like “The Protocols of the Elders of Zion” are readily available. Muslims can not have it both ways, if it is illegal to display anti-Muslim material, then it must be illegal to display anti-Jewish or anti-Christian material.